Jaded Heart
by RosalieAnneliese
Summary: Hard to summarize this without giving it away. This story is to replace my untitled story that accidentally got deleted. Hopefully you will like this one just as much as that one! Let me know!
1. Chapter 1

"Calvin Benson! Out of bed, lazy bones! You're going to be late for school and I'm going to be late for work!" Olivia called for the third time that morning as she got ready for work, holstering her gun and attaching her badge to her belt, before rushing to the kitchen to throw together her son's lunch. She wasn't going to tell him again; if he wouldn't get up, she would go in there and douse him with cold water.

Calvin was warm and comfortable in bed, dreaming about Selena Gomez, but he knew that his mom would only call him three times. If she had to come into his room, she would be accompanied by a cup of very ice cold water. Calvin was no dummy, he preferred his showers warm, so he obediently dragged himself out of bed. Unlike Olivia, Calvin was _not_ a morning person, and it didn't help that he had been up late reading his comic books, despite Olivia's strict instructions to turn off the flashlight and go to sleep. Still, he managed to shower and dress in record time.

"Well, good morning, sweetheart," Olivia chuckled when a sleepy Calvin appeared in front of her and put his arms around her middle, hugging her. Olivia returned the hug and kissed the top of his head, "we have time for a quick breakfast. How about milk, toast and blueberry jam?" She knew that this was his favorite, and she was rewarded with a smile.

Calvin arrived at school just five minutes before the bell was due to ring. Quickly, he gave Olivia a hug and a kiss. Olivia returned the affection while telling him to have a good day and to remember to write down all of his homework assignments. Calvin jumped out of the car and hurried into the building while Olivia quickly made her way toward the precinct. With any luck at all, she would be able to punch in exactly on time.

"Good morning, Olivia," Captain Cragen addressed her, "you and Nick are catching today, but we haven't had anything yet."

"Maybe we caught a break and crime has decided to take a holiday." Nick grinned from where he sat at his desk.

"Yeah, right, Amaro," Olivia rolled her eyes as she sat down at her own desk, "I've been at this job for almost twenty years. Trust me, even on an _actual_ holiday, crime doesn't take a holiday."

Two hours later, still no cases had come in. Everyone was surprised. A day with no cases happened about once every two hundred years in this line of work. Olivia had finally resigned herself to a day full of paperwork when her cell phone rang. She put her pencil down, wondering who would be calling her.

"Benson."

"Hi, Mom." Calvin's voice came from the other end of the line.

"Hey, baby," Olivia greeted him warmly, "are you okay? Are you sick?"

"No, ma'am," Calvin assured her, "I'm okay. But I forgot my Geography notebook at home on the kitchen counter. Could you bring it to me, please?"

"Sure, I can do that. Give me ten minutes."

"Good morning, Detective. What can I do for you?" the secretary at the front desk greeted Olivia.

"I just need to drop this off to Calvin. He left it at home this morning."

"Oh, not a problem," the secretary smiled, "I'll have our office aid get it to him right away. He's in math class right now. He doesn't have geography until after lunch."

"Thanks." Olivia turned to go.

"Detective Benson? May I have a word with you?"

Olivia turned to see the principal standing in the doorway of his office. She walked into his office with him, preparing herself to hear about some sort of mischief that Calvin had gotten himself into. Calvin wasn't acting up anywhere near as much as he did when Olivia had first taken him in, but, like any normal child, Calvin had his good days and bad days.

"I was just about to call the precinct, Detective, but since you are already here..."

"Not a problem. What can I help you with? Did Calvin do something wrong?"

"Oh, no," the principal shook his head, "Calvin's behavior has been excellent. But we do have a situation with another one of our students, Leslie Morrison. She's in Calvin's class. She's eleven years old, and she hasn't been in school for about a week. As you know, parents are required to call and let us know if their child won't be in school, but we haven't heard from Leslie's parents. We've tried calling them three times, and nobody answered the phone. Would you mind terribly going to their address and checking things out?"

The principal handed Olivia a slip of paper with an address on it.

"I'll head over there right now." Olivia nodded as she glanced down at the address. She recognized it as being located in the wealthier side of town.

All seemed well when Olivia pulled up in front of the Morrison's house. The neighborhood was quiet, except for somebody's dog barking somewhere in the distance. Olivia walked up to the house and immediately pulled her gun when she noticed that the door showed signs of being tampered with. She nudged the door open with her foot and stepped inside cautiously.

She almost tripped over something, and looked down. There at her feet was the beaten, bloodied body of a woman, starting to grow cold. Olivia assumed it was Leslie's mother. A few feet away lay a man, Leslie's father, whose body was in even worse condition than his wife's. The room was a mess; blood everywhere, furniture overturned. Olivia's heart pounded in her chest as she whipped out her cell phone.

"Nick, get a bus over to 567 Crystal Ct. Two bodies on the scene, a male and a female. Signs of a break-in and signs of a struggle…. Their little girl goes to school with Calvin. She doesn't appear to be in the house, but I just got here, so I'll keep looking…. Okay…. No, not that I can tell…. Right."

Olivia ended the call and went in search of the rest of the house, praying that Leslie was still in the house somewhere. Alive.


	2. Chapter 2

"Liv!" Nick shouted as he entered the house with the rest of the squad, EMTs, and CSU on his heels. He looked up as his partner quickly descended the stairs.

"No sign of the girl. We have a kidnapping on our hands," Olivia reported, "and we have to get Morales in here. I found a camera planted in her bedroom. There might be more."

Little did they know, Leslie Morrison was on her way to the closest version of Hell that existed on Earth.

She wouldn't stop crying, so he hit her, which only made her cry more. He knew he should have gagged her, but he didn't think of that until it was too late. He considered pulling over, but eventually he decided to just let her wail and reached over to turn on the radio, finding a station that was playing hard rock. With the volume cranked as high as it would go, nobody could hear her.

After what felt like an eternity to the little girl, the van stopped. The man carelessly tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and carried her into a building. He took her down to a basement, and opened a door.

"Welcome to your new home, princess. Holly, clean her up!"

And he tossed her into the room, nearly knocking her out when her head landed on the concrete floor. He glared at the other girls huddled in the room, and slammed the door behind him as he left.

Never having been more frightened in her life, Leslie tried in vain to release her feet and wrists from the ropes tied around them. When she couldn't do it, she began to sob.

"Hey, hey," a quiet voice said to her as somebody knelt beside her and began to untie her, "stop your crying, sugar. You gotta learn to shut up around here, so you don't get beat too often. Jack doesn't like a lot of noise."

Leslie looked up to see who was untying her. She looked into the face of a beautiful girl with long auburn hair who looked to be about seventeen or so, wearing a black bra and matching thong, and a bejeweled collar around her neck. The girl noticed Leslie staring at her and gave her a little smile.

"Hi, there. My name's Holly," she said, "I take care of the girls here, when I'm not working for Jack. What's your name?"

"Leslie. Where am I? Why did he take me? He killed my parents!"

"I know, peanut," Holly sympathized, "he killed mine too. He took you because you're pretty and you'll bring him in a lot of money. I'm not exactly sure where we are, except we're in some sort of mansion. I've been trying to figure out our location for years."

"What do you mean, years? How long have you been here?" Leslie was afraid of the answer.

"I've been here since I was eight. I'll be eighteen in six months. Come, let's get you cleaned up." Holly helped Leslie to her feet and led her over to a small sink. The water came out brown, and the washcloth was little more than a rag, but it was better than nothing. Holly carefully wiped away all traces of blood on Leslie's face, neck, arms, and hands. Leslie would need to change clothes. Jack would throw a fit if Holly left her in her bloodied jeans and shirt.

"I'm hungry." Leslie whined. If she were in school, her class would have been getting ready to go to lunch now.

"Don't expect food until you've been trained to Jack's expectations, kid," a new voice snapped bitterly, "you're a dog now, not a Fifth Avenue brat. Get over it."

"Kaitlyn, shut up," Holly ordered sternly before turning back to Leslie, "don't mind Kaitlyn. She's been here two weeks and is still learning how life works around here. Hopefully you'll learn faster than she does. If you're a good girl and work hard, Jack will have me bring you upstairs. Until then, you live down here."

The girls heard a whistle blow from somewhere above them.

"That's my cue," Holly sighed, "here, put this on, quickly. I have to get back upstairs."

With Holly's help, Leslie stripped out of her clothes and put on the thin fabric of the white t-shirt. She was about to ask Leslie for some pants, but one look from the older girl made it clear that she was expected to go bare butt. She would soon learn that keeping Jack happy and surviving another day was more important than modesty.

Holly tried to ignore the devastated look on Leslie's face when she shackled the child's right ankle, giving her just enough room to walk to the sink, and walk to the bucket in the corner that served as a toilet. Leslie watched with wide green eyes as Holly walked out the door, leaving her alone with all nineteen of her new "sisters".

"Make me a sandwich, girl." Jack ordered as soon as Holly came into his line of vision. He took another long swig of his beer. The large German Shepherd at his feet, with a bone in her mouth, kept a sharp eye on Holly as she passed by them.

"Yes, Master." Holly said as she headed for the kitchen. Jack came in behind her to make sure she didn't steal any food from the refrigerator for herself or anyone else. None of his girls were allowed to eat unless he said so, even Holly, who at this point was more of an assistant than a captive. He put his hand on her butt and gently squeezed while she made his sandwich. Holly resisted the urge to twist away from him. Resisting Jack's touch would only earn her a session with the whip, and her back was still healing from last week's lesson.

"Did you shackle her properly?" Jack asked as he ate his sandwich while Holly knelt at his feet.

"Yes, Master." Holly answered.

"Good girl," Jack pulled Holly up by her collar and set her on his lap, "I'm glad you haven't forgotten what happened to you last week when Belle got loose. Maybe you're actually starting to grow some brain cells."

"Thank you for teaching me that important lesson, Master." Every fiber of Holly's being wanted to scream that Belle getting loose had not been her fault; it had been _him_ who had gotten too drunk to realize what he was doing. But Jack didn't see it that way, and he was not a man that could be reasoned with, so Holly just shut her eyes and took whatever he thought she deserved for "neglecting" his property as quietly as possible, though Jack was never satisfied until he had Holly screaming in pain and begging for forgiveness.

Suddenly, a loud wail came from down the hall. Jack's dark eyes grew wide with rage, and he roughly shoved Holly off of his lap.

"Go handle that, or I will."

Holly hurried down the hall and into one of the rooms. She hurried over to the four year old in the crib and picked her up, gently shushing her as she carried her over to the ironing board that served as a changing table. Although Jade was certainly old enough to be toilet trained, Jack didn't allow it. Jade spent most of her time in this crib, her own private little jail cell. She had learned not to speak, and to only cry when she needed Holly to come change her. Everyone in this place trusted Holly. She took care of them.

Holly heard the front door slam, and she knew that Jack had left. He came and went as he pleased, sometimes not returning for days at a time. He never locked the door when he left. It never even occurred to Holly that she could get herself and everyone else out of the house in these moments.

She was too thoroughly brainwashed.

She did, however, sneak into the kitchen and throw together nineteen bologna sandwiches for her "sisters" locked in the basement. Jack hadn't let anyone eat for almost a week now, but Holly knew that the girls needed the nourishment if they were to please Jack. Holly's very survival depended on the girls pleasing Jack.

Jack never let Holly forget that he had the power to get rid of her early.


	3. Chapter 3

"It's all right, it's just me, darlings," Holly announced softly when she entered the basement, startling the girls, "I brought food. Nothing special, just sandwiches."

"Is _he_ gone?" eleven-year-old Anya asked timidly as she tentatively took the sandwich that Holly offered her.

"For now, yes," Holly told her, "does anybody feel like they're getting sick? Anybody need more water, or a band-aid, or cough meds?"

Holly spent the next half hour treating cuts, sore throats, headaches, and toothaches. She also emptied out the bucket in the corner. Then she went back upstairs to check on Jade. Holly did everything she could for her daughter, but in order to keep herself alive, her first duty was to Jack. Holly watched the child sleep for a few minutes, her heart aching with a love that only a mother could have for her child.

"For a dummy, that electronics store employee is pretty smart," Fin declared as he and Amanda Rollins strolled into the squad room, "for a change all of his receipts were where they were supposed to be. A guy named Jack Gallagher purchased six cameras from that store two weeks ago."

"According to the computer," Olivia scanned the page she was reading, "Jack Gallagher lives in an old mansion out in the woods somewhere off of Central Park…. And twenty three years ago, he was accused of kidnapping, twice, but in both cases the charges were dropped just a few days later." Olivia looked up meaningfully.

"Pull up our old files, and let's figure out who went missing twenty three years ago," Cragen ordered, "I'll be back later, I'm due in court. Try to behave yourselves."

"Not to worry, Captain, I always behave myself!" A grinning Calvin came strolling into the squad room, having overheard Cragen's last statement, "not too sure about my mom and the rest of 'em, though!" Cragen ruffled the boy's hair as he walked past him.

"You better behave, young man, or you'll be grounded for the rest of your natural life." Olivia teased as she stood to greet her son, "How was your day, buddy?"

"Great! I got an A- on my history test!" Calvin announced proudly, receiving a high five from a beaming Olivia. History was not an easy subject for Calvin. Olivia wasn't particularly strict about his grades, as long as he tried his best and was honest with her about whether he needed any extra help.

"Hey, Cal, do you think maybe you can help us out with something? Do you know a girl in your class named Leslie?" John Munch asked.

"Leslie Morrison? Yeah, I know her. Why?"

"When was the last time you saw her?" Amanda inquired.

"Uh… Monday, I think. She hasn't been in school, but I just assumed she was sick or something. Did something happen to her?" Calvin would never admit it out loud, but he had a secret crush on the pretty blonde girl.

"That's what we're trying to find out, honey," Olivia told him, "nobody has seen or heard from Leslie for a couple of days. Did she say anything to you the last time you saw her?"

"Uh, yeah. She said to get out of her way. I was blocking her locker."

Olivia almost burst out laughing, but she turned just in time to hide her smile from Calvin. She reached over and feigned pouring herself a cup of coffee.

Back at the mansion, all Hell broke loose. Jack came flying through the front door, dragging a young girl by her hair. Ten-year-old Sarah was supposed to be servicing a client, and had tried to run away. The client had busted Sarah's lip, and called Jack to report her behavior. Before Jack arrived to take Sarah back to the mansion, the client raped Sarah one more time, to teach her a lesson. Jack had zero concern for Sarah's well-being. He was irate that Sarah had lost him money. The client had refused to pay for an uncooperative companion.

Holly felt a flash of irrational anger toward Sarah. Or maybe it was fear for herself. She knew that she would be feeling Jack's whip on her back that night because of this. Every screw up came back down on her. She was the trainer, after all. She should have done more work with Sarah. If she had trained Sarah properly, Sarah wouldn't have tried to run away.

Holly was going to die in six months. That much she knew for a fact. Ever since Jack had first abducted her when she was eight years old, he'd made a point to tell her several times a day that her eighteenth birthday would be the day of her death also. When Holly was thirteen, Jade was born. Jack told Holly that she had five years to care for her daughter before Jade became his property. Five years had quickly become six months. It was now just a matter of making sure that Jack was pleased so he wouldn't get rid of her early.

Night came far too quickly. Jack looked at Holly with empty, soulless eyes.

"You know what to do."

It was a sentence that Holly had heard many, many times before. She got up and went to his bedroom. She took off her bra. She laid face-down on the bed and waited. She no longer needed to be restrained for a beating. Jack believed that restraints were like training wheels; with enough practice, you wouldn't need them anymore.

And Holly had endured ten years of practice.

She heard Jack come back into the room, There was a pause, and then the beating started with no warning. Jack went into the same tirade he always did when he was beating Holly. He started ranting about all of the horrible things he was going to do to Jade when he had finally disposed of Holly. As Holly screamed her way through the beating, she sensed that something was different, and tried to focus on it. Then she realized. Jack's speech was more emphatic than usual, as if he were actually speaking to someone, instead of just ranting like he always did. But why?

She was horrified to learn the answer. She turned her head, and there was Jade, standing in the doorway, watching quietly, with wide, terrified eyes. Jack had taken her out of her crib, and quietly told her to stand by the door and watch what was happening to Mama.

Something deep inside of Holly's psyche broke, and she knew that she had to get Jade out of that house, whether it meant an early death for her or not.


	4. Chapter 4

It is rare that two people can spend ten years together and not know each other exceptionally well, inside and out. The same was true with Jack and Holly. Jack knew that Holly usually bounced back fairly quickly after a beating, but almost two months had gone by, and he sensed that something was different – _Holly_ was different. There was a fire, a will in her eyes that he thought he had beaten out of her years ago. She carried herself with more confidence. Jack knew that he was losing his control over Holly, and it made him nervous.

He was right. Holly, knowing that Jack was watching her carefully, maintained the outward appearance of an obedient slave girl, but she was constantly on alert, piecing together the best plan of escape possible. Her mind was constantly working out how to successfully get herself and Jade out of the house. Holly knew that she couldn't afford to overlook anything. One wrong move would be disastrous for Holly, Jade, and everyone else in the house.

It was rare that Jack sent Holly out on a job. He preferred to keep Holly for himself. The one exception was Jack's brother, Brandon Gallagher. Brandon found Holly's beauty too tempting to pass up, so Jack graciously allowed Brandon to enjoy Holly whenever he was in town. Because they were family, Jack had offered to let Brandon enjoy Holly free of charge, but Brandon insisted that it wasn't fair for the prettiest girl in the house to not be bringing him any money.

"Holly! Get your ass in here!" Jack called from his bedroom.

Holly appeared, and Jack waved a package in front of her face.

"Brandon will be here in an hour. We need to get you and the brat ready. I am not a babysitter." Jade wasn't his kid. He had already done his part by allowing Holly to keep Jade, and had even gotten her a crib. He wasn't about to trouble himself to look after the kid while Holly was working.

"Yes, Master." Holly knew what was coming. The same thing that always happened when Brandon was in town. Jack would take a shower with Holly, rape her again in the shower to remind her that just because she was being loaned out didn't mean that she didn't still belong to Jack, and dress her in whatever outfit Brandon had sent over this time. This had been the routine since her thirteenth birthday.

Holly choked back a scream as the hot water made contact with her scarred back. Jack thrust violently inside of her. When he was ready to climax, he made her kneel in the tub, with his usual threat to kill Jade if Holly bit him.

Then he washed her. And none too gently, either. He was not mindful of the still-tender scars on her back, and when he washed her oily hair, he practically pulled it out of her scalp. He pinched her nipples while he roughly washed her vagina, and she almost made the mistake of flinching when he jammed a finger into her butt hole to see if he needed to give her an enema before she left. Holly thanked her lucky stars when he decided that she didn't need one.

The skin-tight jeans and low-cut, form-fitting top felt foreign against her porcelain skin. Jack took off Holly's collar and replaced it with the pearl necklace his brother had sent over, as Holly slipped into the metallic sandals that Jack threw in her general direction.

After Jack deemed Holly's appearance acceptable, he allowed her to tend to Jade and get her ready for one of her rare trips outdoors. The child never made a sound as Holly changed her diaper and put her in a pink t-shirt and black jeans. Holly threw Jade's blue teddy bear (the only toy Jack allowed her to have) and an already prepared bottle of breast milk for Jade to drink (though Jade was already four years old, Jack insisted that Holly breastfeed, and often watched her do it while he pleasured himself) into a plastic bag. Jade knew that they were going to go see her Daddy at that place where she had to stay in the closet until Mama came and got her.

Brandon arrived exactly on time, and eyed Holly approvingly, ignoring the child on her hip. Brandon had no feelings toward Jade, but she served as good cover-up. With her along, it appeared to other people as if the three of them were just a family checking into a hotel. Nobody suspected what they were really there for, and Brandon never took Holly to the same hotel twice. He knew that eventually he was going to run out of hotels and would have to get more creative.

"If you aren't a good girl," Jack whispered menacingly in Holly's ear before she got in the car, "you know what will happen to you when you come home. And your brat will watch the whole thing." He patted her back firmly to emphasize his point, and Holly resisted the urge to flinch.

"Yes, Master." If Holly had a quarter for every time that stupid phrase passed her lips on any given day, she'd be wealthier than Oprah.

"Don't worry, bro," Brandon sneered with an evil smirk, "Holly and I are going to have a great afternoon, aren't we, baby?"

"Yes, Sir." Holly responded respectfully.

"I'll be at the hotel to bring her back at exactly 4:00." Jack informed them. He was notorious for being on time.

The ride to the hotel was silent. Holly passed the time by looking out the window while holding Jade on her lap, trying once again to pinpoint the exact location of the mansion based on street names, landmarks, and her limited knowledge of north, south, east, and west. They drove by a building that Holly recognized as the precinct of the Special Victims Unit. She had seen it on TV many times when Jack was watching the news.

"All right, let's get this show on the road!" Brandon chirped as he pulled into the hotel parking lot. Holly undid her seatbelt, but stayed in the car until Brandon came around to open the door. She wasn't allowed to open her own door, just in case she might think about bolting.

They went up to their room, and as soon as the door clicked shut behind them, Brandon began to undress. Holly still had Jade in her arms, and walked straight to the closet, sitting her down gently on the floor. Jade whimpered softly, but a stern look from Mama told her that now was not the time to make a fuss. Holly handed Jade her teddy bear and the bottle of milk, kissing her child on her forehead and whispering in her ear.

"Stay put, baby. Mama loves you."

Jade knew that her Mama loved her. She told her so every time Mama would come into the bedroom to change Jade's diaper, every time Mama gave her a sponge bath, or when Mama was able to sneak her some solid food to eat. Jade wished that her Mama would hold her more often, but the mean man they lived with who hit Mama wouldn't let her take Jade out of her crib very often. Jade hated her crib, but Mama was very strict about not making any noise. Because of this, Jade's speech was delayed for a child her age, when she spoke at all.

Jade sat in the closet clutching her teddy bear and listened to the familiar sounds coming from the hotel room: Daddy moaning, Mama whimpering, the bed creaking. She jumped when she heard Mama scream, followed by a loud smack. Jade knew that her Daddy had hit her Mama. She recognized the sound from hearing Jack hit Mama all the time.

Brandon hit Holly so hard, she was seeing stars. She had screamed because Brandon was trying to wrap his belt around her neck. One of the things Brandon enjoyed doing to Holly was choking her almost to the point of passing out. But he never let her pass out. He wanted her to witness and remember everything he did to her.

Brandon finally collapsed on top of Holly. He rested on her, breathing heavily, and eventually rolled off of her. Holly looked over at the digital clock sitting on the bedside table. It was 3:54. Jack would be back for her in a matter of minutes. Holly looked over and saw that Brandon was out cold. Holly slowly got up, careful not to jostle the bed and wake him. She put her clothes back on and went to fetch Jade from the closet. She also noticed Jack's car out in the parking lot.

Jade squinted in the light that flooded from the room into the closet, but immediately put up her arms for Mama to pick her up. Jade kept a sharp eye on Brandon as she picked up her daughter and felt inside the pocket of Jade's jeans for the note that Holly had put in there. When she felt the folded up piece of paper, she withdrew her hand and kissed Jade all over her face.

"What did Mama say about the paper?" Holly whispered in Jade's ear.

"Me find a police." Jade whispered back in Holly's ear.

"Good girl," Holly kissed Jade several more times, "Mama loves you, baby."

Jade was going to run. She had spent two months planning for this, and, seeing as how this was one of the rare times that she was actually wearing clothes, thus making it possible for her to run without putting on a show for the whole damn city, she was confident that she had thought out every last detail. Her heart was aching with the knowledge that she would likely never see her daughter again after today. Holly's plan was to run and leave Jade in front of one of the local establishments, like the diner or a coffee shop, and then continue running. If Jack caught Holly, at least Jade would be free of him. Holly knew that the man would leave Jade alone; it was Holly that he wanted.

Holly held Jade tightly in her arms, clutching the child to her chest. She crept to the door and very slowly opened it, hoping that it wouldn't creak and disturb Brandon. Holly knew Brandon well enough to know that he slept like a baby after sex. It was Jack that Holly knew would be chasing her down if he saw her. Holly hurried through the halls of the hotel until she reached the front door. She opened the door and stepped out into the world. If she could make it just two blocks, Jade would be safe.

Then she made a mad dash for downtown New York.

Jack spotted her and he became enraged, swearing under his breath that he was going to give her the beating of her life. He jumped out of his car and ran after her.

"HEY," he screamed, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?! GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE!"

Holly didn't even look back to see if he was chasing her. Her eyes were glued on the front door of the coffee shop. She would drop Jade off there. Luckily, the streets of New York were always packed, so a woman darting around with a child in her arms didn't faze anybody. The traffic on the sidewalk also served to slow Jack down a bit, since he had to constantly dodge people in order to keep track of his moving target.

Holly reached the coffee shop and put Jade down on her feet. Holly saw Jack not far behind them and knew that she didn't have much time to say goodbye to her precious child.

"Mama loves you, baby," Holly told her yet again, kissing her face several times, "find police!" and with that, Holly ran off as fast as her legs would carry her. Just as Holly had predicted, Jack bypassed Jade and continued to chase after Holly.

Jade stood frozen in her tracks for a long time, scared to death. Suddenly, she did something that she hadn't done since she was a year and a half old.

She screamed at the top of her little lungs. Then she started to cry.

A tall woman coming out of the coffee shop approached her, and bent down to her level.

"Hey, there. Are you lost, little one?"

"ME FIND A POLICE!" the child screamed.

"I am a police, baby," the woman assured her kindly, "What's your name?"

Jade didn't answer the question. She remembered the piece of paper in her pocket that Mama had told her to give to a police when she found one. She pulled it out of her pocket and shoved it into the woman's hands.

_This beautiful little girl is my precious daughter, Jade Kennedy. I've managed to escape from the condemned mansion seven blocks west of Central Park, back in the woods, but I cannot risk the chance of the two of us being captured and having to bring her back to that place. If we were captured, my Master would kill me and Jade would be stuck in that house with no way out and nobody to protect her. I would rather that she grows up in freedom, though it kills me that I will never see her again. Please do what you can to take care of Jade._

_My name is Holly Kennedy. Almost ten years ago, I was kidnapped by my Master, Jack Gallagher. Nobody reported me missing because he killed my parents, and I have no other family._

_The mansion where we were kept prisoner is also Hell to nineteen other girls, ranging in age from 4 to 16. Please contact the police and return these girls to their families._

_God bless you._

The woman folded the piece of paper and put it in her pocket. She looked at the terrified little girl. She was malnourished and in desperate need of a bath.

"Hi, Jade. My name is Olivia. Can I pick you up so I can take you to where I work so that my friends and I can take care of you?"

Jade continued to cry as only a little girl can, but Olivia seemed nice, and she was pretty just like Mama was, so she allowed Olivia to pick her up and carry her through the streets toward a big brick building.


	5. Chapter 5

"Do we have anymore information on the girl?" Cragen asked as he joined his detectives at the observation window into the children's interrogation room.

"Yeah, some," Munch replied, "her name is Jade Kennedy, daughter of someone named Holly Kennedy. She's four years old, and she screams whenever Liv tries to let go of her."

As if on cue, a shriek was heard over the intercom system, and the squad turned back to the window in time to see Olivia lifting the child into her arms again.

Jade had never seen so many toys in her short little life, and wasn't quite sure what to do with herself, looking to Olivia for guidance. Olivia was sitting on the ground with her arms securely around the little girl. Jade was still crying, but very gradually became more and more interested in her surroundings, though she still clung firmly to her teddy bear, and to Olivia. The detective was shocked at how delayed Jade was. She didn't even know what crayons or ice cream were. Olivia sent her partner Dani Beck to fetch some vanilla ice cream (Jade steered clear of the men in the precinct). In the meantime, Olivia decided to show Jade how fun crayons could be.

"Look, sweetie," Olivia said, opening the box of crayons, "you can make pictures with the pretty colors."

To prove her point, Olivia began drawing a picture of a flower. Tentatively, Jade tried to mimic her, but couldn't quite manage to make her fingers hold the crayon properly, so she ended up just holding the crayon in her little fist. Olivia smiled when Jade started scribbling on the paper.

"Good girl, Jade. What picture are you making?"

"Mama." the child said simply. Her voice cracked a little because she didn't use her vocal cords very much, but Mama had taught her that it wasn't nice to not answer questions.

"I bet she would like that," Olivia smiled, "can you tell me about Mama?"

"Mama love me. She kiss me an' protect me."

"Where do you and Mama live?"

"In house," Jade paused with a frown on her face, "with Mister."

"Is Mister your Daddy?"

"No," Jade shook her head, "Daddy hurts Mama. Mister hurts Mama too. That not nice. It scare me when Mama scream."

"You're right, baby, it's not nice to hurt people," Olivia agreed, "do you know where Mama went?"

"No. Mama tell me she gonna get me away from Mister. Mama tell me to stay at shop and find a police. Then you finded me." Jade paused and started to cry again, "Me miss Mama."

"I know you miss Mama, sweetheart," Olivia sympathized, "I am going to try to find Mama, and you will stay with a new Mama while I do that."

"I be with you?" Jade's deep brown eyes lit up hopefully.

"Oh, I don't know, lovey," Olivia said kindly, "I'll have to ask if it's okay."

"I be with you." Jade stated firmly, her little mind already having made the decision that she would go home with Olivia. Olivia grinned. She was just too cute!

"Okay, then. I'll call one of my friends and tell her to make it so that you can come home with me today." Olivia agreed. And that's exactly what she did. After having a long talk with Casey Novak, she agreed to put a rush on the guardianship and adoption processes.

Later that afternoon, Jade still hadn't let go of Olivia. She was sitting on Olivia's lap while Olivia sat at her desk working on her laptop and talking on the phone. The doors opened and Calvin came walking into the bullpen, putting his backpack down on the floor beside Olivia's desk.

"Hey, Mom!"

"Hey, kiddo," Olivia ruffled his hair and kissed his forehead, "how was school?"

"Okay," Calvin spotted Jade sitting on his mom's lap, "who's that?"

"Oh, this is Jade," Olivia smiled down at the little girl, "Jade, honey, this is my son Calvin."

Jade was clearly afraid of the opposite sex. They had learned that the hard way, when Finn had tried to offer Jade a juice box, and Jade's response had been to scream bloody murder. But Jade thought that maybe since Olivia was so nice, Calvin would be too. Still, she turned to Olivia just to make sure.

"He not hurt me?"

"Oh, no, baby, Calvin won't hurt you. Calvin is very nice."

"Hi, Jade." Calvin spoke softly, trying not to scare her anymore than she already was. He made a silly face to try and make her laugh. It worked. Olivia smiled when Jade giggled.

Then something miraculous happened. Jade slowly began to inch her way off of Olivia's lap and toward Calvin. Olivia did not try to keep Jade on her lap, wanting her to feel free to get down if she wanted to. She knew that Calvin would keep an eye on her and not let her wander anywhere she wasn't supposed to be.

"I'm back with the ice cream," Dani announced as she walked into the precinct, "sorry that took so long. Apparently the whole damn city wanted ice cream today."

"Not a problem, but watch your language around the kid. Hey, Jade, the ice cream is here, do you want to try some?"

"Yes!" Jade came running back to Olivia's desk with Calvin right behind her.

"Here you go, baby," Olivia took the cone from Dani and turned back to Jade, "just try a small lick."

Jade obediently stuck out her little pink tongue and took a lick of the ice cream. She swallowed tentatively and then shivered at the cold sensation in her tummy. She licked her lips and seemed to be deep in contemplation.

"Well, what's the verdict, kiddo? Do you want the rest or should I finish eating it?"

"Me! Me!" Jade lunged for the delicious treat. She had never been allowed to eat sugary things before. She only ate Mama's breast milk, or sliced apples, or, once in a rare while, half a sandwich. Olivia smiled at Jade's enthusiasm, but held back a bit.

"Sweetie, when you ask for something, it's always nice to say 'please'. And then when someone gives you a gift or a treat, it's nice to say 'thank you'," Olivia took her role as legal guardian very seriously, and teaching Jade manners was part of her job, "Can you do that for me?"

"Please ice cream?" Jade said hopefully. Olivia rewarded her by handing over the ice cream.

"Now what do you say?" Olivia prompted. Jade paused and thought for a minute to remember what Olivia had said.

"Tank ew!"

A couple hours later, Olivia could tell that Jade was getting tired. She was only four years old, after all, and any toddler would be totally exhausted after the crazy day she'd had. Olivia had more work to do, but the little girl's eyelids were drooping.

"Hey, Cal," Olivia said softly, "take her, and the two of you can hang out in the crib while I finish working. She'll probably fall asleep."

Suddenly, though, Jade was wide awake, screaming and shrieking.

"NONONONONONONONONONO! NO PUT ME IN CRIB! I BE _GOOD_ GIRL! NO CRIB! _NO CRIB_!"

Olivia was thoroughly confused. She knew lots of kids who didn't like taking naps, and would make a fuss about being put down for one, but this was something different. Jade was utterly terrified, and it obviously had something to do with the word "crib". Olivia would have to ask her about it, but Jade needed to be calmed down first.

"Shhhhhhhhhh. Its okay, baby. I gotcha. Good girl. That's a good girl."

Calvin went in search of a vending machine while his mom spent a few minutes calming his new little sister. There was a time when Calvin would have been jealous of Jade getting any of Olivia's attention. But Calvin had been Olivia's son for three years now, and he was finally secure in the knowledge that she loved him no matter what. In time, Jade would feel the same way. Olivia had rescued Calvin; she would rescue Jade too.

Meanwhile, there was nobody to rescue Holly. She ran as long as she could, which wasn't very long at all due to her lack of nutrition. Jack caught up with her, grabbed her arm and pulled her into an empty alley. Before she could scream to attract someone's attention, Jack slapped some duct tape on her mouth. He pushed her to the ground and undressed her, breaking both of her wrists when she tried to fight him.

Jack raped her one last time, more violently than ever before. When he was done, he took a knife out of his back pocket. Holly knew that she was going to die… four months and three days early. She closed her eyes and thought of her daughter. No matter what else, Jade was free, and that was all that Holly cared about.

Holly felt Jack start cutting her in various places. She could feel the blood seeping from her shoulder, her left breast, her stomach, and her genitals. Her body couldn't take it any longer and she passed out from the pain. Jack plunged the knife into her heart. Holly stopped breathing.

"It's Holly Kennedy. Jade's mother." Olivia stated when she saw the body at the crime scene two days later. Calvin had gone to school that morning as usual, and Jade was hanging out with Casey Novak at her apartment (Olivia had learned the hard way that Jade was not toilet trained, so before she left, she made sure that Casey was stalked up with training pants and wipes). The ADA had the day off and had offered to look after the little girl so that she wouldn't get bored at the precinct. Although Jade liked Casey and knew that she wouldn't hurt her, she had been reluctant to let go of Olivia, and the detective hoped that she had settled down.

"How do you know? Warner hasn't even run DNA yet." Dani asked, standing beside Olivia.

"Jade is the spitting image of her. I mean, think about it. Same hair color, same blue eyes. Jade even has her nose."

"I'll know more when I get her back to the lab," Melinda Warner informed the detectives when she walked up to them, "right now, I can tell you that both of her wrists are broken; she's been raped several times over a number of years, she has scars on her back from multiple beatings, and she has recent ligature marks on her neck consistent with a leather belt or something similar."

"Fluids?" Dani asked.

"Yes. I'll let you know what I find out."

By the time Olivia's work day was over, the results were in: the body in the alley was indeed Holly Kennedy's body. As Olivia drove toward Casey's apartment to relieve her of babysitting duty, she wondered how she was going to tell her four-year-old charge that her Mama was dead.


End file.
